Sebastian Vettel has downplayed Ferrari’s pace during Friday practice for the Mexican Grand Prix, saying it “doesn’t mean anything”.
Ferrari finished behind Mercedes in first practice despite running a softer tyre compound, but Vettel set the pace in second practice with the front-runners all on the super-softs.
Nico Rosberg believes Ferrari could be a “big threat” to Mercedes at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez but Vettel has admitted it’s too early to say if his team can challenge.
“Overall it was a good day: the car seems to work, not only judging from the result but also as an overall feeling,” he said.
“The pace was there not only for one lap, but for all the laps we have completed. Also, we were always ahead of schedule leaving the garage, which is not always the case.
“For sure it is nice to be first in the time sheets, but this doesn’t mean anything on Friday. If we are in the same position tomorrow afternoon, then we can be happy.
“I think everybody was fighting with the same problems, trying to make the tyres last, especially the super-softs.
“I didn’t have successive laps because I had so much traffic, but overall the pace was good, which is the most important thing. I think we can still improve for tomorrow and go from there.”
